It's All About the Children

It was recently made public that a drinking fountain at an elementary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) had concentrations of lead 7 times higher than the maximum recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). My initial reaction was "are you kidding me?"

Now I attended and was educated by LAUSD schools and actually understand some of the constraints and obstacles it faces when it comes to educating its students (e.g. lack of funding, poor teacher-to-student ratios, sub-par teachers, etc.), but there is no excuse when it comes to protecting and maintaining the safety of our children.

And lead levels 7 times higher than normal concerns me just the same as school related violence (possibly a discussion for another time) because the safety and health of our children are being compromised. Symptoms of elevated lead concentrations in children include cognitive impairment (lower IQ scores), behavioral changes (inattentiveness, hyperactivity, inability to focus), and more general ones ranging from headaches, decreased appetite, abdominal pain to vomiting and convulsions.

Fortunately, over the last 30 years we have seen lead concentrations in children decrease quite dramatically secondary to a couple very important industrial changes in the United States: lead was removed from gasoline and paint in the 1970s. Of course, over this past year there has been an increased awareness surrounding lead exposure as the paint used in some of our children's toys made outside of the US was found to have lead in it. But what occurred in this one elementary school serves as a reminder that lead is still something to be reckoned with, even in our own backyard. In order to prevent lead accumulation in the district's schools older and galvanized pipes, each water fountain in every school needs to be run for 30 seconds to flush out any potential traces of lead.

Unfortunately, this was not routinely occurring. In fact, it is unclear how many other schools in the district may not have been complying with the mandatory guidelines and I do hope the superintendent of the district follows true to his words and swiftly deals with those who were responsible for this unacceptable error.

And how was this elevated level even found? A parent (who just so happens to work at a local water district) tested the fountain water. Is that what it's come to? Parents have to police our schools? Maybe this is the answer.